The Black Ops
by Permagate
Summary: He is an accomplished and skilled Kiri ANBU. He has done countless assassinations, sabotage, and many other dirty things his Kage requires him to. But when a certain Kamui sends him to another world to do the bidding of a young knight, how will Tabitha utilize his skill? One thing for sure, The King of Gallia will make sure it is worthy for his cause.


DISCLAIMER:

Masashi Kishimoto owns Naruto universe and Noboru Yamaguchi owns Familiar of Zero universe.

A/N:

This is obviously an A/U. Still, Other than the background story of Tabitha and all characters associated with it, it remains the same. The first part of the story will follow the plot of the canon, with some politics added in for good measure. After a certain point, it will deviate from the canon greatly. I hope you enjoy this tale of mine.

* * *

This place is really beautiful.

The forest is endlessly vast, green-colored as far as my eyes can see. The sky is really clear, perfectly complimenting the woods perfectly. A long river cut through the forest. The sound of the water flowing to the sea is alluring. One glance is plentiful to tell the purity of the water. Fishes swim lazily waiting to be caught.

Regrettably, I don't have time to appreciate its beauty more thoroughly.

Flipping the kunai I grip, I turn my body to deflect the incoming kunai, before landing my body to a nearby tree. I take note of the ninja who have managed to catch up. He is young enough, probably around the same age as me. But his notable face is enough for me to identify who I am fighting with.

Kakashi the Copy Ninja.

He doesn't hesitate to throw another fast kunai, followed with another kunai. I easily dodge both of them, but not enough to prevent him to shorten the distance between us. Instinctively, I parried his kunai slash with my own. For the next moments, we trade blow with our kunai. In the end, I manage to deliver a kick, gaining enough gap as he is thrown aback. I quickly follow up with hand-signs that allow me to deliver a jutsu with my village's affinity.

"Water Release: Gunshot!"

As soon as the water bullet is released from my mouth, I prepare to leap and escape this predicament. That attack should delay Kakashi a bit for me to cover two or three shunshin distance.

But my battle-hardened mind screams danger, urging me to take a defensive stance fast.

"Chidori!"

It is only thanks to my last second hesitation that I manage to evade an A-Level Assassination Lightning Jutsu directed to my fucking blind spot. I grit my teeth as I duck and grab his arm. That shit is bursting lightning around, even if I'm not hit directly. Almost every good Kiri Ninja hates Lightning Jutsu passionately for a reason. I try to kick his arm; only, he also tries to kick my other leg.

He is faster. But I am strong enough to withstand the attack. I throw his body as far as I can since I still hold his arm from his earlier failing jutsu. Of course, I am not surprised to find a log has replaced him the moment his flight is about to be stopped by a tree. My body backpedals on its own as Kakashi brings down an axe kick.

I now notice that Kakashi has unsheathed his right eye. His sharingan arouses my nervousness, but I just ready myself to avoid whatever jutsu he throws against me next. Time stands still, before he surprisingly speaks.

"You don't bring the Forbidden Scroll with you." He state flatly. I curse. Somehow, he knows that the scroll is not in my possession. It is a matter of time before he realizes that my fellow kiri-nin and I have used a diversion tactic, with him bringing the scroll instead.

We are currently making our way home after we retrieved a forbidden scroll from our plant in Konoha, Mizuki-san. Whatever method he used, the Konoha ninja somehow became more occupied to capture a certain other person rather than getting back the scroll themselves (a demon brat, if I remember what Mizuki-san muttered correctly, whoever that is). Nevertheless, it certainly helped us. We easily slipped past under their radar, comfortably clutching the valuable parchment of knowledge.

That is until we detected a lone ninja approaching with an alarming speed. We didn't waste time to handle the unexpected variable. Kiri border is nearby. We split. And now, I have to face a visibly irritated A-class ninja, armed with a sharingan. I just hope I can live to tell the tale.

"I'll just deal with you quickly then."

Without warning, he rapidly makes handsigns. The bad news is, I don't recognize what jutsu he will unleash with those. But the distance between us should be far enough for me to react and evade it.

I never expect a jutsu that will hit me instantly.

"Kamui!"

Before I can do anything, I feel pain all over my body, and rolled over. It feels like I have been trampled by a horde of bull. The worst part is, I lose control of my movement. I cannot even scream.

"I'll give last advice for a good fight you gave earlier. Be prepared to suddenly appear in another world entirely." The fake Uchiha say smugly. Then, he adds bitterly. "Not that I know where you will be taken to."

Fuck you, Kakashi.

As if he heard my curse, he just shrugged nonchalantly. Then, I feel disperse of chakra from where Kakashi stood before. He probably uses shunshin to chase my friend.

Oh well, I have done enough I guess.

And then my vision becomes black.

* * *

It has been what, seconds? Minutes? Hours? Days?

One thing for sure, I have lost my sense of time. Oh, and add touch to that lack of sense. All I know is the blackness that accompanies me. I don't know death personally. Only, I have delivered death itself too much to be counted. But if I have to guess, this is the closest feeling I have ever got about death. If I can think about it though, that means I probably haven't died yet.

A paradox, hurray.

…

That's why I am surprised when I suddenly feel wind breathed to my neck. Grass licks my feet. I can feel my body again. Overall, I'm confident that I'm back to the living world. First, I have to ascertain the danger level I'm in now. So, I open my eyes.

...to be greeted by an unexpected sight.

Oh, the scenery is normal. Too much like Konoha for my taste, but I don't dislike nature. I'm probably in the middle of a clearing. I notice that I am surrounded by people. Those are teenagers, and a middle-aged man. Their attire is totally unlike what I have seen. And I consider myself well-traveled, as does every ANBU should be. All of those teenagers wore a civilian white cloth, a uniformed one, draped with a piece of black cloak. They are also armed with a stick (of which the length varies, but I doubt they are used for combat). The old man reminds me of a civilian school teacher.

Now that I think about it, maybe this is a civilian school.

That is, if I ignore the other elements which amounts to almost as much as the people. Several of them are paired with an animal. Cat, dog, frog, you name it. I can probably conclude this is some sort of beast-training school. But they look too civilized to make a beast master. Not to mention that some bizarre-looking animals are too otherworldly to even be classified as an animal.

I mean, is that a fucking floating eyeball I see there?!

Safe to say though, I should not be in a dangerous position. They look like civilians. The animals look tame enough, albeit some are a bit bizarre-looking. So I rest my combat mode.

After a while, the teacher is the first one to break out of stupor, saying some weird shit. One teenager replies with some other weird shit. That's when I know that they are in a language I'm not familiar with, which is also the moment I recall the last words of Kakashi.

_Be prepared to suddenly appear in another world entirely._

Heh.

After a while, I finally notice of the person in front of me. She is short. Very short. Her height doesn't even reach my neck. She is dressed like others. But unlike her peers, her gaze was cautious, and she levels her stick (which is longer than other sticks the students use; I'm still not sure of their use) to my neck. She positions herself to be ready in any possible scenario.

She is blue-haired. Of course, I also note and choose to ignore of the various hair colors the teenagers sport. Wherever Kakashi sent me, it's probably the custom.

After that, a conversation probably happened between the blue-haired girl and the teacher. She becomes more relaxed. She suddenly makes a handsign, which almost alarmed me, only to understand that she just beckon me to crouch. Seeing no harm on it and deciding that going with the flow is probably the easiest (though probably not the best) decision for now, I lower myself. She then waves her long stick and says some weird words, which prompts a chuckle from me. That looks ridiculous. And then, she taps her long stick to my forehead, followed by her hands cupping my cheeks. Her face breaches my privacy boundary.

Why does it feel like she is about to kiss me?

Only for my thought to be confirmed when I her lips touch my ANBU mask. I am surprised, but I don't say anything. She immediately withdraws. While I ponder about this strange course of action, my right hand burned. Feeling like burned to be exact. I reactively covered my right hand with my left one, as the pain intensifies. Not too long, it subsides.

I gaze at a cool-looking tattoo in my right hand, that I don't remember being there before.

"Hear me?" And now, the fuzzy-wuzzy I keep hearing suddenly becomes as clear as any day. A language I also don't remember learning before is suddenly ingrained deeply on my mind.

"Crystal." I make it sounds as cheerful as possible. I'm used to my happy-go-lucky persona on espionage missions. For now, I'll treat this situation as one.

"Tabitha." She nodded meekly. Even without the newly-armed language, I know she meant introduction, as short as that was. Now then, what name should I use?

"Call me Squirrel, Miss. Pleased to meet you!" I decided to use my animal codename. She stares blankly.

"Squirrel?"

"Yes, you hear that right, Miss Tabitha!"

She just shrugs. She silently waves her head, asking me to follow her. I am more than happy to oblige, if only to escape the attention of other people. On the other hand, I am also inclined to follow the girl somehow. After that indirect kiss euphoria, I feel like having some sorts of attachment with the blue-haired petite. After all, I should have vanished and left from this gathering. That attachment denies me from even contemplating that option,

Is she placing a Genjutsu on me?

I silently try to dispel it, to no avail.

A tanned redhead smiles and waves her hand. We come to that woman. For a teenager, she sure is very well-endowed. I compliment her on that.

"You summon a flirtatious one, Tabitha!" She is happy despite what she says. My companion just muffles weakly. "Now, if only you take of that mask so I can take a good look of you…"

"I assure you that I am not as handsome as I hope you want me to be." Also, I don't want my face to be known right now.

"Ah, your modesty greatly saddens me!" She expressively shows her disappointment. She drops the act as quick. "Alas, let's exchange pleasantry, my shy boy! I'm Kirche Zerbst, titled the Ardent, as nothing can stand my fiery love!"

With a bit difficulty, as I am still new with my new profound linguist, I extract her name from that long (and unnecessary to be honest) sentence. Is she Ardent? No, I'm pretty sure it's Kirche. I give her my name, receiving the same odd look I was given from Tabitha earlier.

"Your parent must be some animal lovers. Which reminds me, what is your family name?"

We talk a bit after that. I'd like to think that she is trying to pry my private information. I just give her some half-truth answers. All the while, Miss Tabitha is silent and opts to read a book instead. I observe a blonde teenager takes our place in the middle of the gathering.

"Still, I am surprised that you summon a human, Tabitha." Miss Kirche's voice tints with admiration. "I know your familiar will be special, I speculated a dragon in fact. But this one blows my expectation!"

"Unusual." Miss Tabitha replies distractedly. I recognize her speech pattern now. She either lacks communication skills or just likes to talk efficiently. Either way, she seems to be unsociable.

"Yeah, I don't know if it is good or bad though." The redhead smiles bitterly.

I still observe the teenager in the middle reciting some words, but these last tidbits of conversation spikes me enough interest to draw away my attention.

"Can you elaborate on that point, Miss Kirche?" She gives me a questioning look. "When you said that Miss Tabitha here summons a human?"

She then explains to me the concept of 'Familiar'. From which, I also learn that this group is in fact, as I have guessed earlier, a flock of students. Apparently, they are now under obligation to summon an animal to make the 'familiar' contract with, as noted when a mole (the biggest I have ever seen too) appears out of nowhere near the blonde teenager I observed earlier. Her explanation definitely fits with the high amounts of animals I have seen here.

The concept is eerily similar with the summoning technique back home, albeit permanently summoned, and has lifetime duration too. Familiar is similarly tasked with helping the summoner in general. While it is done differently, there is also a contract involved between both parties. Maybe this world also adopts the same chakra system as my world, but nothing supports my evidence so far. I feel something akin to chakra when the blonde summoned the mole, but I cannot exactly say that there is chakra involved in the summoning. Like, an entirely different shape of energy is the law here.

More importantly, I don't know what to think of me becoming a familiar of someone. It doesn't sound so bad. It might even help me in the long run too in this different dimension since I have something akin to a confidant. I glance sideways to Miss Tabitha. Teenager or not. Still, I cannot help but feel that I have lost my freedom.

Let's not think too much about it. I skillfully hide my anxiety.

"But Miss Kirche, it is as if you indirectly say that I am an animal! That's mean!"

I expect a joke or tease in return. She just awkwardly laughs.

"You see, no noble ever recorded to summon a human in history…" She trails off, thinking about an idea, but shakes her head anyway. "Yours is a unique case."

I file away her mention of 'noble for later questions. Anyway, maybe my unique summoning interests the middle-aged man, which I presume to be this group's teacher. He has been looking this way once in a while.

I kind of expect my 'unique' status, since I have my own explanation to reason with it. Miss Tabitha might be summoning an animal like her peers. But I was summoned (moved forcedly?) to this dimension because of that jutsu Kakashi used on me. One way or another, the jutsu might collide with her summon. The result is me becoming the one she summoned instead.

My respect for Kakashi has risen. Any ninja with a space-time jutsu deserves that. Maybe this will be fun for me as well. I grin.

"Have you finally succumbed to your base desire, Squirrel?" Miss Kirche playfully asks me. I finally realize that my musing makes me randomly gaze at her breast. My grin doesn't help either.

"Pervert." Miss Tabitha unhelpfully comments at this time.

"No no, I was just lost in thought, Miss Kirche, Miss Tabitha. I feel a bit special since I am the first human to be summoned in history!"

"About that, you should be careful." The redhead turns deadly serious all of a sudden. The gravity of the situation suddenly heightens my sense too, which makes me picked up the whisperings from other students around. I thought they were just talking or gossiping like any usual students would do. Which is not far from the truth, but now that I begin to notice the whisper, I now notice that they are talking about us. Miss Tabitha specifically.

"She summons a barbarian of all things, haha."

"Commoner or noble? Take a pick."

"Maybe she is like Zero."

"I feel sorry for her."

"I don't know man, she is a prodigy."

"I cannot sense his magic at all, he must be a commoner."

"Pity."

I don't know what to make of those talks. If I have to generalize this situation, it would be curiosity. So I just tune out their whispering. If Miss Tabitha herself doesn't really mind, why should I?

"This place, or Tristain in general to be honest, isn't exactly the kindest place to unusualness. We enjoy comfort zone too much." Miss Kirche states as she takes a glance at someone. She is looking at a pinkette loli who is furiously scribbling the ground, probably practicing for the ritual. Maybe that loli is an example of what she is trying to say.

"Say, I'm curious." She brings back her attention to me. "Are you a commoner?"

I'm not sure what she is asking about to be honest. As far as I know, noble or commoner are used to differentiate wealthy status. But in here, I think they mean more than that. Or maybe the admittance that one is not a noble brings notoriety.

Thankfully, I don't need to answer it since a commotion coincidentally shows up.

"Would you please shut up?!"

Someone snarls to no one in general. I think she refers to the crowd for their whisperings. Even with low volume, they are still a nuisance.

"Take your chattering out here, this field is for summoning ritual, not for you gossiping!"

I take a look at my savior. She is the one Miss Kirche looked at earlier. She tries to make her point across by exaggerating her arm's movement. I silently note that students clear away from her randomly pointed stick she hold in her right hand.

It is silent for a while, before someone suddenly starts to snicker. Others follow afterwards.

"What is so funny?!"

"You truly are Zero, practicing for the summoning ritual!" To my surprise, it is Miss Kirche who responds.

"Hmph! Unlike you, I am always serious of my study!"

"Or maybe you are just afraid you will blow your summon to smithereens!"

The pinkette is about to retort a reply when the middle-aged man interrupts. "Be more silent, a noble must act like a noble should be. Unless of course, you have to retake your lesson on etiquette, Miss Valliere, Miss Zerbst?"

"But Mr. Colbert, they snicker on me!"

Mr. Colbert gives her a look that says 'I am having none of that'. At that, she rests her case. Miss Kirche just smiles coyly. Miss Valliere gives a not-so-subtle glare at the redhead, which she ignores completely. The pinkette then sees me for a bit, analytically in fact. Not for long though, as she is back to her practicing again. The whispering continues. Oh well, I learn two names from this little incident.

After that, it comes to Miss Kirche's turn. She prepares a drawing on the ground easily. She then proceeds to recite the same words all students I have seen before used for the ritual. All the while, Miss Valliere abandons her practice and decides that glaring to the back of the redhead will make her at ease. It is futile however when a reptile shows up. Though I don't think it's a normal reptile when Kirche flaunts to the fact that she managed to summon a 'Salamander' of the fire dragon mountain. That makes me remember of the famed Hanzo Hattori. Miss Kirche might be better than she seem to be.

I see Miss Valliere walks to the center now. It seems that she is the last one. Unlike the others before, as she draws the circle on the ground, the lots expectantly observe this one. They also take some steps back, like trying to cover themselves from something.

"You might want to step back too, Squirrel." Both Miss Kirche and Tabitha also do the same. I throw her a questioning look, she just answers that this one will be messy.

And messy it is, since Miss Valliere somehow produces a big explosion. Good thing I heed the advice like a Good Samaritan.

I try to adjust my eyes to the smoke. I can make a shadow coughing in the middle, but Mr. Colbert acts fast and already there (For a teacher, he moves really fast; I have to be more cautious on that one). He helps Miss Valliere standing up and drags her out of the smoke. Not that it matters, as the smoke clears quickly.

In the summoning ground now stand a human. Now that makes two.

"Another human…" Miss Kirche speaks in wonder.

"…Bad omen." Miss Tabitha frowns.

"Well, I did expect her to summon something extraordinary. She is Zero after all."

Ignoring their banter, I observe the summoning ground. He seems to be a very much normal civilian at a glance. He is probably the same age the students here. He doesn't have any noticeable weapons, but that depends on what he hides behind that jumpsuit. Unlike my summoner, the pinkette is bewildered after she knows what she summons. She tries to ask Mr. Colbert for re-summoning, but he refuses, stating traditions and such. All the while, the summoned teenager seems to be trying to understand the situation and figuring out the language.

No one knows who start it, but many people now mock Miss Valliere for summoning a commoner, sans Miss Kirche. Like me, she chooses to analyze the situation, probably on why two humans are summoned today. I can understand, since if one is never recorded before in history, let alone two, it will normally be interpreted as a sign of something. Miss Tabitha does.

To her credit, Miss Valliere composes herself and ignores her peers' words. Maybe she is used to it. She walks up to the human and reluctantly finishes the ritual. Unlike me, his rune is drawn on the left hand.

"Okay, congratulations on your familiar, my students!" Mr. Colbert smiles and congratulates the group. I think his mind is on another matter entirely though. "Let's go back to the academy."

The group begins to disperse. Some students, especially the one with heavier animals, make a lesser group and walk leisurely, comparing their familiar to each other. Some choose to wave their wand and, to my surprise, levitate. All of them go to the same direction. I make out a stone castle from afar, their academy I assume. Miss Valliere and her familiar choose to walk, and bantering.

"Let's fly, Tabitha. Can you levitate all of us?" Miss Kirche asks distractedly, her eyes still on the retreating figure of the pinkette. Miss Tabitha just nods.

"Whoa whoa!" I suddenly feel my feet leave the ground. I gaze at the ground, only to find that I am getting higher and higher. I see the blue-haired noble waving her hand and chanting some words. All of us were lifted from the ground. We begin to speed ahead to the same direction everyone else is heading to.

I have to admit, flying is damn awesome.

* * *

Soon after, we arrive in the academy. Rather than a school, this is more like a lord's castle. It is very grand and wide. The castle is stone-built, erecting an old feeling. I drown myself on admiration for the building. In my world, a building as beautiful as this is a hard-find, let alone an academy. I wonder of the local ruler's castle if the academy is this good.

Of course, my mask hides my fascination.

I try to assess the social mechanism on this place. We come across many others who dress the same uniform, with some students wearing different color for cloak.

"Year indication." Miss Tabitha answers when I ask her about it. Miss Kirche helpfully elaborates on her answer. "The color tells the student's year. As you can see, Tabitha and I wear black cloak, since we are both a second year student. First year students wear brown cloak while the third year wear purple one."

Seniority doesn't seem to be the norm here as students from different years mingle with each other. Miss Kirche cheerfully greets all the (male) students she knows. The female students seem to regard her with animosity. But that is quickly replaced with curiosity on my existence.

"Good evening, Miss Zerbst, Miss Tabitha." Other than students and occasionally instructors, I also find many helpers inhabited the academy. Miss Kirche tells me that they are called a 'Maid'. They are responsible for many non-academic duties such as cleaning, laundry, cooking, etc. Their social positions also require them to respect and bow to the students and instructors they meet, walking under their notice if need be. It was then that I learn the great social distinction between a 'noble' and a 'commoner'.

"It is because a noble is gifted with magical ability. Commoners are not." Miss Kirche again happily answers my question when I ask her about the social working. "I don't know where you come from, but in here, magic has a say on everything. It determines your social status, strength, respect, and many other things!"

"This magic that you are talking about. Is this the one that Miss Tabitha used earlier to fly us?"

The redhead looks at me incredulously.

"You never see magic before? Are you a commoner?"

I just shrug. The way I see it, if they don't know about me capable of performing 'magic', the better it is. I don't see any reason to let out my ability yet. Let them all think of me as a commoner for now.

"Only in books and stories."

If she has any opinion on that one, she doesn't voice it. Miss Tabitha just reads her books like usual.

"No matter, just keep in mind of what I told you."

"Of course, Miss Kirche."

Satisfied, she is back on her hunt of male students. Not for long though, since we arrive at our destination, the faculty office. They write something on the paper laid out on a desk in front of the office. Familiar registration they say. As soon as the words written, they disappear. We walk to their rooms after that.

The maids are lighting the torches as night approaches.

* * *

Meals here are served like in Kumo here. In Kiri, the culinary consists of seafood dishes all the time. The place is really rich in marine product after all. In here, they serve bread and many kinds of fruit. Miss Tabitha said that it is a standard affair for dinner. The drink is delicious apple water, but it will be different from night to night. All in all, I still welcome the change. I am sick of fishes.

I am currently alone with Miss Tabitha in her room. We make a trip to the kitchen earlier, telling them to serve two meals to her room for dinner. I am grateful for that. Unlike her noble friends, Miss Tabitha looks like a nicer person, despite her quiet demeanor. We eat in peace in her room.

She eats slowly, or maybe I am just that fast. My life on battlefield teaches me to eat quickly. You never know when danger suddenly appears. I choose to observe her room while waiting for her to finish. It is basically a dorm room, with a single bed, a study desk, a wardrobe, a small eating table we use right now, and one small and one large cabinet, probably for holding academic materials. There is also a big bookcase full of books, though I expect that from a bookworm. A case is nearby, also full of books. A single window adjourned the room, facing the outside. It is big enough for me to go in and out. Since the room is on the third floor, it is not that high to make it a possible escape route when the needs arise.

Satisfied, I see that Miss Tabitha finally finishes her food. Like its entrance, it magically disappears as soon as she puts back the tissue she used to clean her lip.

She stands and dusts herself. She glances at me and says," Follow me." And follow her I do.

We exit the room, descend the stair, and walk. The academy at night is really empty, sans some maids here and there. Finally, we stop at a courtyard. She casts a spell (the term they use for that stick waving thingy) and lifts us. We make our way to a rooftop.

If she bothers going to a private open area, I guess she want to appraise my skills.

She takes a stern stance. Her eyes are analyzing me deeply as she reads my build and weapons. I feel like I am being valued by my superior, which is not necessarily wrong in this case. She might also be deciding to trust me or not as her familiar. Personally, I have elevated her status to 'Mizukage'-equivalent, life is easier and more meaningful if I have someone to give my loyalty to. I suspect the contract has something to do with my willingness, but I don't think too much on it.

She is the first to begin the conversation. "Pledge your loyalty."

Without any hesitation, I answer. "I swear my loyalty to you and your cause. I will take down all enemies in your path, so that you can fulfill your ambition, dream, and destiny. With this, I trust my well-being for you to use as you see fit, My Master" I give her the exact same oath I pledge to my Mizukage. If she knows my world, she would know that this oath is not to be taken lightly, including the fact that I called her 'My Master'. It is a worthy replacement for the Kage title.

I think she grasps the points I am trying to make however, since she makes the first smile I have seen on her face since our first meeting.

"Proper Introduction."

"Yes, Master. My name is Kongui Itsuki, a member of my country's Black Ops. My codename while in field duty is Squirrel. I like swimming, drawing, and playing poker. I dislike stubborn people. I dream of becoming the black ops commander, but I don't think it will be possible anymore." I replace my ANBU affiliation with Black Ops. It is easier that way. Then, I hastily add, "I would prefer if Master just calls me Squirrel."

Miss Tabitha nodded, accepting my introduction as a sufficient one. She then coughs, as if preparing a speech.

"I am Charlotte Helene Orleans De Gallia, the head of the Orleans Family, the revered nephew of the Gallia Ruler, King Joseph, ranked as Knight of the North Parterre…" She breathes a little, before continuing. "I am under the order of the king to infiltrate Tristain Academy of Magic. The alias I use is Tabitha the Snowstorm, a chevalier of the Norfatul."

She rests her speech as her breathing becomes rigid. She must be not used to long speech. I digest the introduction she gave me.

"Call me Tabitha." And now she is back to her short speech. I must make myself used to it now.

"Yes, Master Tabitha." She looks like she is about to say something regarding her 'Master' title, but she decides to tell me to call her whatever I like.

Now that the introduction is finished, it is time for her to gauge my skill, and for me to know the limit of my master.

"Skill?"

"I will start with my physical skills. I am armed with a short sword and several throwing kunai, it's like a knife. It goes without saying that I'm very proficient on using them."

"Melee specialist?"

"Not really. I can also use something like magic, though technically it's not a magic." She raises her eyebrows on that one, so a demonstration is in order. I don't know if my jutsu still works, but I still can feel chakra flowing in my body. I raise my hand, and concentrate to make a tiny bit of chakra flows to my palm. I convert the chakra to water element and disperse it. It results in a sudden tiny burst of water appears in my palm.

"No wand?" She seems to be very surprised on that. I think the wand she asks is the stick they all use to cast the spell, so I just nod to confirm her question.

"Without some sorts of water source nearby, I can produce water and do some useful things with them like shooting a water bullet. But if there is plenty of natural water, I can do even more amazing things with them.

"Like a water mage." She states with satisfied smile. It seems that now she has a better opinion of my ability. Element manipulation really influents one's value here.

"I am also skilled in Illusion Magic, if there is such a thing in here." At that, Master is surprised. "I can make my enemies see illusion, make an illusion copy of myself, and also change my appearance."

She thinks hard on that revelation. It looks like my last skill is rare on this world. She sums up her thought in one word. "Useful."

Seeing that I don't continue talking, she realizes that I might be curious about Master myself.

"Wind Magic." Nice, I can think of some scenario where her magic will help my water jutsu. That also explains why she could easily levitate three persons and one animal easily. She confidently adds. "The best in here."

After that, we discuss how magic works in here. It seems that magic is heavily associated with elemental manipulation. There are only five known elementals, which are Fire, Water, Wind, Earth, and Void. No one has ever used the last one except The Founder, their prophet of sorts. She said that distractedly. Anyway, normally, people are born innately capable of using magic. They are designated as nobles and usually are lineage dependent, which means if one of the parents doesn't have magic, the child might not be magic-capable. If both of them don't have magic, their children will never be able to wield magic. Thus, noble-commoner system was born. When one can use magic, he/she is usually also born with an elemental affinity, which makes him/her easier to manipulate that element. That doesn't mean one is incapable of using multiple elements however. It is just really hard. Lastly, each noble is also ranked based on the amounts of manipulation they can wield. The most basic one, one element manipulation makes a dot noble. The best one is a square noble, capable of wielding four elements. I must remind myself that the elements wielded by a noble don't have to be unique, which means one can wield four wind elements and still be a square noble. In fact, most nobles work like that. The difference is square noble can wield stronger and more variant of magic than their dot noble counterpart.

I also learn that Master is a triangle noble, wielding three wind elements.

After the long discussion ends, Master stands and smiles to me.

"Welcome."

Finally, the first welcome I receive today. It makes me warm. I decide to take off my mask and show Master my real face. I answer her welcoming smile with my own thankful smile.

"Thank you, Master."

* * *

Master decided to go back to her room, she needed her sleep. When she asked me, I just said that I will sleep somewhere in the shadow with my sleeping bag. I have this weird belief that it is not appropriate for me to share a room with a girl I don't intend to sleep with, especially so if that girl is my master. I found a shade under the wall outside not too far from master's room. It is covered with enough shadows that, coupled with my black cloak and sleeping bag, it will be hard to find me sleeping unless they are really looking.

Satisfied with the place, I don't immediately go to sleep as I have one other thing to do. As I walk, I note that even in the midnight, the castle is not completely deserted. There is a couple flirting with each other for example. I recognize the male as the blonde noble earlier that summoned a giant mole. I slip past them easily without their notice. I also come across the other human familiar. He brings a basket of dirty clothes. A maid is accompanying and chatting with him happily. The maid is the only one here I have seen with a black hair, other than the teenager familiar and me of course. I am still curious with the teenager familiar, but the thing I need to do takes priority. I am on my way to the library.

A good ninja must learn about the local geo-politics, and the current political situations. I am confident that I am a good ninja.


End file.
